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Verizon’s Device Payment Plan Can be Used as a Way to Keep Unlimited Data and Upgrade Phones

This morning, we wrote up a recap of Verizon’s new Device Payment Plan since it went live today for smartphones and could be an option for those looking to upgrade phones earlier than the new 24-month upgrade cycle. Specifics on keeping unlimited data or how this new plan affects your current contract were a bit murky, though, so we reached out to Big Red’s PR team to get deeper clarification. We’ve heard back with what I would consider to be good news.

According to Verizon, if you are an existing customer with an unlimited data plan, keeping your unlimited data can still be accomplished by purchasing phones at full retail price, and the new Device Payment Plan is considered an option. Here is the statement:

Currently if an existing customer has an unlimited data plan, they can keep their unlimited data plan as long as they pay full price for their smartphone and the Verizon Wireless Device Payment Plan is an option available to them.

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I’m one of those with the unlimited plan since the original came out and will fight like crazy to keep it. Luckily, we upgraded to a 4g LTE the month prior to them changing the rule. Yes, new phones can be expensive, but I had a pretty good idea and now it is coming to fruition that people like “new, shiny things”, so unlocked, 4g LTE phones, that work on the Verizon network, are now hitting various site with prices from $50 to $200. No, these are not new, I don’t care. I link mine to my network and VZW can’t do a thing about it, because it just so happens that they absolutely address this in their “terms and conditions” page (not the normal one everyone sees”, but it is hidden deep in their website. Cost is $20 per month to use the system, unlimited, as a hotspot and specifically allows…

Even their own sales and technical people don’t know this, much less the normal customer. There is specifically NO expiration date on this agreement. And yet, it is on their PUBLIC website.

http://www.facebook.com/davidtb Dt Bell

Manufacturer should sell all phones Unlocked, and let the chips fall where they may.

http://twitter.com/P0iS0NXX P0iS0N

Verizon is getting worse and worse. First they took away the new every 2, then the 1 year contracts, then the unlimited data plans. What’s next? Switching carriers is becoming more and more attractive these days.

Bionic

X phone with unlimited data here I come.

iamme

this isnt a requirement….you can still upgrade at the subsidized price….they are doing this as an option for people that need a phone and dont have an upgrade, or just want to stay month to month without paying up front…..not all customers will qualify for this just like their tablet installment plan….it is an option, not a new policy like tmobile

http://twitter.com/HunterH116 Siddhartha Gautama

I wish I could move away from Verizon and latch on to a GSM carrier like AT&T (maybe), and live in an LTE area. The only reason I keep Verizon is because it is the only carrier that I get coverage with at my location… which is terrible. I still get 4G signal though, so at least I’m not suck in 3G.

Tyler

Is that an OG Droid i see?

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1121997417 Ed Wheat

I dont know why everyone assumes you have to pay for the full year. You can pay it off in 2 months. Pay a whopping 4 bucks more for the phone.

http://www.vgchartz.com SuperChunk

I don’t see how anyone sees this as a good change from how its always been with a contract.

YOU’RE NOW PAYING MORE FOR LESS.

epyon0

ill pay monthly on a full retail price phone to keep my unlimited data. people expecting to have a lower price on their monthly plans. need to remember what company they are dealing with. they penalize their own employees if a customer buys a phone full retail. (docks them on commission in some way.)

Lane252

I bet the big wigs at verizon are just laughing at us who are contracted to them….whelp US cellular here i come…

Me

Honestly, I don’t know why everyone is complaining about this. VZW is not in the business of being cheap or saving money. If you’re with VZW, you’re paying for service. If you want cheap go to Sprint or TMo. Yes they charge a lot but guess what? It’s being put into their service. If you want a Ford you’re gonna get Ford performance. You buy a BMW or a Mercedes, you’re getting luxury. As someone who’s tried all the carriers, VZW is def #1. And I live in NYC where everything is suppose to be good. Just my 2 cents.

http://www.vgchartz.com SuperChunk

Your two cents are worthless.

Over the last couple years Verizon has been making changes that continuously cost us more. $30 service fees. Shared data. Now loss of subsidized phones while not decreasing plan fees.

Glad you enjoy a company slowly ratcheting up the price. I do not. I’ve had Verizon for 18 years due to it having the best network. But they’ve never had this many negative changes in such a short time.

Tim242

You aren’t losing phone subsidies. Full retail is just another option.

BigCurt

I’m actually happy about this. I was not looking forward to ponying up the up-front costs of a phone in order to keep my unlimited data. In the near future, I see Verizon making sure they get rid of this feature for people with unlimited data lol.

http://www.vgchartz.com SuperChunk

They won’t because now they are making at least $25/mo more on these people. They are still increasing their subscription revenue AND making a healthy margin on the phone.

http://www.facebook.com/Butterflygirl8i8 Crystal Clark

I’m curious to find out if it will just be available through corporate Verizon or through their retailers as well. I love my local, independent store!

Phil Nolan

I wonder what happens if you don’t buy your phone from Verizon. I got mine last one from Amazon because it was cheaper than Verizon. Of course I still kept my current plan and unlimited data.

dhirensavalia

I’d rather save $50 every month for a year and buy the ($600) phone. I know this only saves me $24, but I don’t want to pay an extra $52 every month.

Tim242

It’s just a mental thing. Even if you pay it all up front, that is still $50 extra per month.

CaptainHowdy13

Including the $2 a month, just a quick calculation of $674 / 12 is over $56 extra a month. Considering I pay like $80 a month, this is out of the question!

rodney11ride

Wait is that an appearance by the OG?

http://www.facebook.com/eddie.j.camacho Eddie J Camacho

So what if I don’t want a new phone?????

JoshGroff

Then you don’t get one? O-o

EC8CH

Is that the OG Droid?

rodney11ride

Thought the same thing… lol

http://www.facebook.com/balaams.ass Jon Wright

If only Verizon had the best LTE network coverage. Oh wait.

JoshGroff

LTE isn’t really a necessity, HSPA+ is fast enough for most things outside of torrenting and streaming HD video. Which of course, Verizon only offers unlimited to grandfathered customers, so many consumers really won’t get much use of that magical LTE. Now, if Verizon were to resurrect unlimited, then you just might have a valid point.

EC8CH

Surprising.

DJyoSNOW

That’s what I did so…again vzw you still have not done me any favors…buying it out right??

http://twitter.com/scottyfromga Scott

I wanna get a S4 but I’m not paying 600 bucks just to keep unlimited data. F. THAT.

theineffablebob

Did anybody else’s upgrade date change? It used to say I could upgrade in November 2013 but now it says March 2014.

bob

Ya upgrades went from every 20 months to every 24 months as of today. So your upgrade date got moved back 4 months.

Rodeojones000

This was mentioned earlier. Upgrading at 20 months is no longer an option. We now must wait a full 24 months.

Not a bad option, especially for those of us wanting to keep unlimited data and having no other option except to use Verizon (because of a lack of coverage from other carriera). Now we just need Verizon to actually release a phone worth buying using this plan.

Ronaldo

yeah, and we all need to make sure that we don’t end up BUYING THE WRONG PHONE!

Rodeojones000

I guess I don’t understand what you’re trying to say here.

Ronaldo

Just a reminder to myself to ask you for your permission/recommendation before I purchase my next phone, King Rodeojones.

Big EZ

I don’t understand why most people don’t just switch their upgrade to another line to keep unlimited data, I’ve upgraded 3 phones for myself and 1 for my wife this way. I know that not everyone has other lines available for this but many do, and it saves lots of $$$.

gokusimpson

I think they just nixed that.

Tim242

You can do this on lines with phones. They nixed the ability to do it on non phones

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=75200646 Stephen Cox

Glad to see that I can do this. I pay $10/line per month for unlimited 4G data and I am NOT signing a contract to lose that. Paying full price every other year for a phone is still saving me money….

http://twitter.com/howzball Mike

Can I be Mister Obviousman? If you want, you can go out right now, pay full price for a phone and keep your unlimited plan. No muss no fuss and your wallet will be a lot lighter.

John

Not everyone wants/can go throw $600 towards a phone.

Thomas

Amazing

http://twitter.com/mortodestructo Mort

Kleendroid, is that you?

Thomas

LMAO !!! Nice

EC8CH

This is actually.

Bionic_Pags

Why would i give Verizon more of my money, plus interest. I bet a phone they sell for $500 can be bought for $400 anywhere else. My point is to deal with them as little as possible while keeping my unlimited data… i want no other business with them.

rodney11ride

This is true… even a “new in box” on ebay is about 100-200 less than verizons retail…

http://twitter.com/Skitz_Marz Skittlez

this is not true. Thunderbolt was $700 at Best Buy, but $560 at Verizon

Bionic_Pags

Yeah, cause best buy is much more credible

Mudokon83

Just buy a phone on swappa.com and bring your phone into verizon and sell your old phone on swappa.com

win win

JoshGroff

That’s what I do.

Mudokon83

unfortunately i had to combine my plan with my fiance, but with 4gb shared and unlimited talk/text I’m at a cheaper point then i was with a single plan with unlimited data.

we’ll see how this goes, who knows in 2 years we could be on tmobile or a better verizon plan.

http://twitter.com/Jatthewmoly Matt

Don’t forget about a local used phone shop. Sometimes swappa can be a rip off

Sum Gai

How is this any different than yesterday? I have an unlimited data plan and I could buy a phone at full retail and just switch lte card… correct? What is the “announcement”?

TSY87

the only difference is now you can break down the payments to 12 installments… albeit with a 2 dollar per month charge.

Sum Gai

Thanks! After I read it again (and the comments) it made sense… Facepalm.

TSY87

it’s still a wiser financial decision to buy outright.

http://www.facebook.com/nathanielnewmanmusic Nathaniel Newman

OR a customer can use a second line (that only has a feature phone) and do an Alternate upgrade to the main line. Then unlimited data stays and no monthly payments. However since the contract is 24 months. It would be better if payments were 24 months too. As it is if a device is $300 then over 12 months that’s $25 MORE on a persons bill if it were 24 MONTHS it would be around $12 both don’t include there finance fee,

http://www.facebook.com/people/Ray-Gray/519500594 Ray Gray

Swapping upgrades no longer work with non smart phones as of yesterday

Jonathan Wow

Yes it does… it doesn’t work with TABLETS.

MichaelFranz

If you want to go that route you can. I have kept my unlimited for years now and i usually buy off craigslist or eBay at a decent price. I paid $400 for a S3 back in November and probably could of sold it for more, but i didn’t.

I see this could get out of control though. I would see people doing this to buy phones and up sell them. Pictuire S4 release or iPhone release. its like saying you have $1000 line of credit, you can buy 2 phones sell them, pay off VZW and probably profit depending on demand.

http://twitter.com/Danzoman316 Daniel Medlin

Years now huh?How long has unlimited been gone?

MichaelFranz

meaning i’ve had it since i’ve been with verizon and kept it through all the “get rid of it BS”

Detonation

I guess if you’re strapped for cash and can’t float ~$700 up front this is nice, but the whole finance things ruin the spirit of it. T-Mobile’s payment plan is fee free.

Dain Laguna

i dunno if that was the intended tone of your post or not, but id argue the vast majority of americans cant ‘float’ 700 dollars up front, especially for something as frivolous as a smartphone. you are talking rent/mortgage for some people.

why do you think most folks just pay to stay in contract?

mustbepbs

I don’t know what kind of money that guy makes to just piss away $700 on a stupid smartphone, but most people save their emergency funds for..you know..emergencies? There’s a huge line between “strapped for cash” and $700.

Detonation

Well the vast majority of americans also spend beyond their means. Maybe they shouldn’t be making a frivolous smart phone purchase if they can’t afford it in the first place.

Dain Laguna

paying 700 and saving up 200 to get a new phone because your droid x has crapped out are 2 totally different matters. assuming that just because folks overspend they must have that dough someplace or they are just spending it everywhere else is silly.

anyone who thinks the average american can ‘float’ that type of cash is severely disconnected from what goes on in the average person’s financial life. there are folks who CAN float this, who simply wouldnt given what it is.

rodney11ride

and there coverage is rural free… stop comparing apples to tangerines.

dgarra

The sky is blue.

Artune

Yep I’ll just stick with Verizon as far as they can take me with my unlimited (GNEX) and once they force you off, hopefully google establishes 4G with their Nexus lines or I’ll join another carrier.

venom12784

Verizon does know April 1st is long gone don’t they

Benjamin Mackie

Still BS though that they got rid of the option to actually keep unlimited data

http://twitter.com/litobirdy litobirdy

um thats super old news with new contracts

Benjamin Mackie

No matter the amount of time, Im still not ok with how VZW is working really hard to screw me over as a customer

Mordecaidrake

I’ll continue to have my family members use my upgrade to get the phone for 1/3 the price then just swap the phone over to my line. The second I am forced off the unlimited data plan, I leave Verizon for a shittier carrier. I’m not going to pay $80 a month for data so I can continue using my phone as I do (which is Pandora/Spotify streaming)

TheBoatIsReal.Com

No point to do a payment plan, just buy it outright. The payment plans makes the phone more expensive

JoshGroff

by $24 but saves you quite a bit up front, to some, it’s worth the tradeoff. I’d still rather buy my devices used a few months after release when the price drops to about half.

wufilesolen

my roomate’s step-aunt makes $63 every hour on the laptop. She has been unemployed for ten months but last month her paycheck was $14474 just working on the laptop for a few hours. Read more on Jive8.c­om

LiterofCola

Exactly, I’ll probably be buying the X-phone at full retail up front, all the while keeping my unlimited data.

XphoneTroll

X phone doesn’t exist.. Just a fake rumor..

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1593169740 Chris Amaya

DId you make that user name JUST to troll? Well played

XphoneTroll

http://allaboutdroid.wordpress.com sremex

It may actually make you more money to do the payment plan. It is all about the time value of money.

JoshGroff

Or just buy a used device if you can’t afford/ don’t want to shell out $600 for a new top tier device.

Destroythanet

Yeah, if it’s not subsidized, might it well buy it upfront like a TV, computer, or any other type of electronic.

RaptorOO7

Verizon see’s the Family Share Plan as “Successful” so I wonder how long before they simply close it out? If you are not on “contract” you don’t have an expectation of keeping that plan so they can kill it off at any time.

tyguy829

WOAH. So they are expecting you to pay this monthly installment+$24 financing charge+the subsidy already included in your plan? That is absolutely ridiculous and it should be illegal to charge you 3 times for the same thing.

Austin Warren

This way you can a new phone anytime.

tyguy829

Ok, then take the subsidy out of my plan since I am not subsidizing anything! I have put up with verizon’s bs for years, but somehow this one really gets to me

What about those without unlimited that don’t want to sign a contract?

zepfloyd

…I was mostly being sarcastic; point is they’ll always have an excuse. It’s Verizon.

JoshGroff

True. >.>

PhoenixPath

…but I don’t need a plan for my watch!

http://twitter.com/mortodestructo Mort

I think you accidentally a word.

http://www.droid-life.com Kellex B

Hate to say it, but this may be the price to pay to keep unlimited data on Verizon. At least it’s an option for those who do not want to or cannot afford to fork out $650 up front.

Also keep in mind that if you buy a phone outright at full retail, it’s not like Verizon is giving you a discount on your monthly service and taking out a subsidy payment. So there really is no change here, other than the $2 service fee.

JoshGroff

Exactly, I don’t know why people are all bent out of shape over it, besides the fact that they aren’t making plans cheaper to account for the lack of subsidizing.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=524116311 Steve Schaper

That sounds like a pretty good reason to me – they are essentially jacking the rates by the cost of a new phone every 18 months. That is a not-inconsiderable sum of money.

JoshGroff

I know, but that’s not a problem with the payment plan on the phone, that’s a problem with Verizon’s plans.

uhhhh

…which is why people are bent out of shape about it…

JoshGroff

…That has nothing to do with the payment plan itself…

DJyoSNOW

Because vzw is redundant and they are not doing me any favors. I bought mine out right before they implement this.

Simon Belmont

Well they could, you know, actually make the plans cheaper. That’s what T-Mobile did.

Why should one have to pay the subsidized price for a phone even if they’re paying full price for it (either upfront or over 12 months)? It doesn’t add up.

JoshGroff

I went over this a few posts down, and I agree they should lower the monthly rate for non contract users. However, that is a different problem entirely and has nothing to do with having the financed phone option available. Truth be told, the way it is now, it makes more sense to get in a contract and etf if you decide to switch carriers. (For higher end devices with subsidies greater than the etf that is.)

LiterofCola

Exactly, this is the price to pay for having Verizon’s superior coverage AND keeping unlimited data. Some people just have to have their cake and eat it too.

Bionic_Pags

But why go through Verizon? You can buy a phone anywhere else for probably cheaper. They will probably jack up the retail price of the phone for more than you can get it somewhere else.

Rodeojones000

While this might be true, do those other, cheaper alternatives allow for purchasing the phone using some sort of payment plan? No, they don’t. Not everyone can afford to pay $500 up front, but $55 extra per month for a year is a bit more plausible.

Bionic_Pags

I gotcha… it’s another option… i would assume this is for people who don’t have a credit card or any other means to pay for a phone… however at that point, you should probably consider spending $500 on something else other than a phone… I don’t trust it… Verizon is always out to EFF someone to make more money… i guess it’s the way of the world these days. /Bitter Rant over.

Rodeojones000

Indeed, it’s another option. Nothing wrong with that.

jaymonster

But consider this, $25 over one year is 4%… How many credit cards have that low an interest rate? If you are going to “finance” a phone, the VZW offer is less than most credit cards.

CapnShiner

That is less than the current APR of most credit cards, but you also have to factor in the difference in retail price between Verizon and everywhere else. If you can find it cheap enough somewhere else, you might still save money. That’s also not taking into account credit cards that offer 0% on purchases or balance transfers for the first year or so. It would damage your credit score, but you could juggle the balance between a few credit cards to avoid paying interest.

CapnShiner

It’s called a credit card. VISA, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, or a store card. Same concept. Yes, you pay interest on your credit card, but Verizon is also charging an extra fee for the privilege of using the new device payment plan.

Rodeojones000

Right. But which of those cards is only going to charge you a total of $24 worth of interest if you take a full 12 months to pay off the $650+ cost of the phone?

Yuppp

You must have failed to see that he said superior coverage which Verizon has.

http://profiles.google.com/cory.simpson Cory Simpson

You must have failed to see he said buy the phone elsewhere, not a use a different provider.

chris125

if only you could get unlocked phones/google sold a nexus through the play store for verizon so we wouldn’t be at the mercy of verizon with pricing

michael arazan

exactly, if the moto x phone does not come out or a new nexus by summer’s end, I’ll just buy a used Note 2 on vzw for half the price of it was new till something better comes out and save $300-400

LiterofCola

Hey, if you can get a phone anywhere else cheaper, then hell yeah, I’d get it cheaper. If not, then this’ll be my next option.

Joe Blow

For the warranty??

Bionic_Pags

Protectyourbubble.com – as good as Asurion, if not better

http://twitter.com/bendystrawboy Morrell B.

exact opposite, full retail prices verizon is usually $100 cheaper.

JoshGroff

For those that have unlimited, it makes sense, for anyone else, it’s quite useless.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100001992840095 Tj Allen

No more useless than T-Mobiles plan of the same demeanor..

Simon Belmont

Except that T-Mobiles rates don’t include the subsidized cost of the phone built in. So when you pay off your phone, you’re not “still paying for it.”

Every other carrier includes the cost of the subsidized phones hidden in the monthly bill. It’s just how it is.

Pastadude

I enjoy the fast speeds and device selection from Verizon. I certainly do not want to lose my unlimited data. That being said, I also don’t want to throw down almost $700 (that day) whenever a phone I really want comes out. Upgrade or not. Honestly, this is a great option to have.

Where I have heard rumors already of AT&T possibly stopping any and all unlimited service, Verizon has no intentions to do that for current customers. They are allowing users to vote with their wallets in keeping the unlimited data, you want it you pay the premium. They don’t plan to toss aside any people who have it for no reason. You will never be simply stripped of unlimited unless you decide to make a move to do so. Screw it, I’m all with this. Would’ve come in handy when the Galaxy Nexus came out and I didn’t have an upgrade.

“It’s okay if we double charge our customers as long as we give them good coverage and a path forward on unlimited data.” That doesn’t sit well with me. For folks that aren’t enjoying unlimited data, it’s especially a bad deal. Bleh.

cg

I have excellent credit. I have credit cards in every brand (Amex, Visa, MC, Discover.) I also have liquidity issues. (This is what happens when grown ups have responsibilities…kids, wife, mortgage, etc.) I think this Verizon deal is an EXCELLENT way for folks like me who want to stay current, and yet NOT lose unlimited data. I suspect all the people on here saying what a crappy plan this is are folks who are on Share Everything plan and are just haters when it comes to folks like me who kept Unlimited Data!

Paying $60 a month to have the latest and greatest phone plus a $2 monthly fee is reasonable. And if you are an unfortunate sap who is on Share Everything, do yourself a favor and go on eBay and search for “Verizon Unlimited Data.” You can still get unlimited from someone who no longer can afford America’s best LTE network (it really is, though…Sprint, AT&T, T-Mobile (especially) are all garbage compared to Verizon.). Verizon knows they’re the best and that’s why they charge what they charge and people pay it. Unfortunately, only suckers went for Share Everything instead of keeping unlimited data. And for what, to have a Galaxy S3 or iPhone 5?? LMAO….

In short, this is a good deal and I plan on doing it if everything pans out. I don’t have to shell out $700 upfront (cash or credit… )

Keith Black

There was never a “subsidy payment” included in the cost of their monthly plans to begin with. This is a farcical assumption.

JoshGroff

How do you think they’re making the cost of the subsidized phone back? Oh right, by making their plans cost more to account for the cost of the subsidy. BYOD plans should always cost less per month as carriers aren’t trying to earn back the cost of the subsidy.

Keith Black

Incorrect.. The monthly price plans are set according to overhead VS profits. When a subsidy is added in to the mix, there needs to be an agreement in regards to the DURATION of service because it will take even longer for you to become profitable to the company (Contrary to popular belief, they are not looking to merely break even). When there is no subsidy, there is no need for a duration agreement. I don’t understand how people get this so mixed up and skewed.

JoshGroff

While that may be partially true, it doesn’t make sense to charge the same monthly rate for customers who pay for their phone outright since there is no longer a subsidy being paid off. (simply not having a contract isn’t exactly valuable enough to make up for that as an ETF+ the cost of the subsidized device is less than the cost of paying for the full off contract price, especially after a few months to a year of service.) If a customer is going to stay with the carrier either way, what incentive is there for one to buy the device outright, aside from keeping unlimited data for those grandfathered in?

BigRedguy

It’s not just partially true, it’s 100% true. And you’re missing my whole point… This is not about seeing how close Verizon can get to breaking even. They do not want there to BE an incentive for you to buy a device outright because the longer you stay with them, the more profit they make. The problem with the point you are trying to make is that you’re probably a power user with an over-developed sense of entitlement. This is not a non-profit public service, and it is not a barely-profit public service. Go raise your pitchforks at Wal-Mart, gas stations, Best buy, grocery stores, etc if you want to be upset about somebody trying to make a profit from you…

RW-1

Exactly 0 we need account reform – pay for what we use, not this tiered or even unlimited BS …

http://techonblogger.ward.pro/ Stynkfysh

So this is basically a plan for people with poor credit who can’t pay with credit cards. Who gives a sh*t. I’ll use my Visa and get 3% cash back, thank you.

iamme

people with poor credit probably will not be eligible to have a phone installment plan just as it is with needing top tier credit to buy a tablet on the installment plan

http://techonblogger.ward.pro/ Stynkfysh

Then the plan is for no one and its a misinformation campaign to make the T-Mobile plans less attractive?

zepfloyd

Look, I’m not understanding all the kvetching here. You don’t have to do this, it’s an optional way to pay for a device your previously couldn’t. If it’s not for you (or me), fine but there’s no real reason to act like someone’s stealing your unborn child over it. I’m willing to bet for people who break or lose their phones mid contract this will be useful and successful. Not everyone can shell out $600+ on a phone at a random time.

That is why you buy insurance… Buying a high end device without it just doesn’t make sense.

Ian

I do it all the time, but I guess I’m careful or something…

JoshGroff

I’m careful too, but that still doesn’t prevent a phone from breaking if you trip and fall and it flies across the sidewalk now does it? Accidents happen.

http://twitter.com/mvqual D L

Sure accidents happen, but how often? I don’t understand buying insurance on a $600 item

JoshGroff

Best Buy insurance is $10/month, if you break your phone they repair or replace it at no cost. The cost of a new replacement is well over the cost of 2 years of insurance, and a lot can happen in 2 years.

Ian

You are correct. Yet as far as ‘making sense’ when it come to insurance and high-end devices, I think that is a case-by-case decision. I’m sure I’ve saved enough by not paying monthly for insurance to buy a new phone in the event I break mine.

Daistaar

If you lose or break your phone its usually 100 for a replacement, not 600.

Daniel

The $24 isn’t actually even worth fussing over when you consider that Verizon charges a $30 “upgrade” fee for everyone renewing their contract and getting a subsidized phone.

Brian Williams

I think that’s what people are failing to see. The unlimited plans we’ve been grandfathered into already include a subsidized increase over the base price to pay for the phones we got at discount. This really is a way to charge twice for a phone.

Once this contract period is up, I am exploring pay-as-you-go. I’m very tired of being price gouged by big red.

Me

Honestly, I don’t know why everyone is complaining about this. VZW is
not in the business of being cheap or saving money. If you’re with VZW,
you’re paying for service. If you want cheap go to Sprint or TMo. Yes
they charge a lot but guess what? It’s being put into their service. If
you want a Ford you’re gonna get Ford performance. You buy a BMW or a
Mercedes, you’re getting luxury. As someone who’s tried all the
carriers, VZW is def #1. And I live in NYC where everything is suppose
to be good. Just my 2 cents.

http://profiles.google.com/cory.simpson Cory Simpson

I don’t think people are complaining on how much the service costs, vs the nature of there being no transparency in what they are paying for. Despite what some argue, Verizon does have a factor built into your service to pay off a phone you subsidized through them. People want the option not to pay that if they BYOD, which I think is reasonable. Much like I save 10 dollars a month on comcast by using my own modem.

But, I also don’t think people realize that it probably isn’t as much as they think. Verizon gets massive cuts on these phones. They aren’t paying full retail, or even close to it.

Simon Belmont

This! This is exactly what I’ve been saying since I heard about this.

It’s double dipping in its purest form. Verizon has no shame, apparently!

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